All About Royal Families

On 27 March 1746, Carlo Maria Buonaparte also called Charles-Marie Bonaparte was born in Ajaccio Corsica (then a part of the Republic of Genoa) as the youngest of three children.  Family His parents were Giuseppe Buonaparte, who had represented Ajaccio at the Council of Corte in 1749 and Maria Saveria Paravicini.  The Corsican Buonapartes were descended from minor Italian nobility of Tuscan origin, who had come to Corsica from Liguria in the 16th. century.  Carlo studied to be a lawyer at the Pisa University but he left before earning his degree to take charge of family responsibilities.  Love and marriage Carlo married Donna Maria Letizia Ramolino. Both were of Corsican nobility and very young at the time of their marriage. Carlo was 17, Letizia was 13! Their marriage was arranged.  They would have 13 children between 1768 and 1784. Five of them died, eight children survived.  Among them: Napoleon Bonaparte, who became later Emperor of the French.  Ga...

 On 6 March 1405, John (in Spanish Juan) was born at Toro, Zamora.  Family John was the son of King Henry III of Castile and Catherine of Lancaster. His paternal grandparents were John I, King of Castile (after who John was named) and Eleanor of Aragon.  His maternal grandparents were John of Gaunt, 1st. Duke of Lancaster and Constance of Castile.  John was a member of the house of Trastámara. Reign On 25 December 1406, John became King of Castile and León. His mother  and his uncle, King Ferdinand I of Aragon, were co-regents during his minority. When Ferdinand I died in 1416, his mother governed alone until her death in 1418. The rule of King John II of Castile lasted 48 years, it was one of the longest in Castilian history, although John himself was not a great monarch. He spent his time verse-making, hunting and holding tournaments.  Love and Marriage  In 1418, John married Maria of Aragon, the oldest daughter of his paternal uncle: Ferdinand I of ...

 On 2 January 1699, Osman III was born in the Edirne Palace (now it is located in the north of Turkey). Family His parents were Sultan Mustafa II of the Ottoman Empire and Sesuvar Sultan. He was a member of the House of Ottoman. When his father was enthroned Osman was taken captive in the Kafes, this was a part of the imperial harem. He lived there for more than 51 years! Reign On 13 December 1754 he became the 25th. Sultan of the Ottoman Empire.  Due to his captivity he hated music. He banned all the musicians from the palace! Osman III gave the order to build the Nuruosmaniye Mosque in Istanbul. The construction of it started under the reign of Mahmud I. Death On 30 October 1757, at the age of 58, Osman III died at the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul. He was succeeded by his nephew Mustafa III. 

James Hamilton was born on 19 June 1606 at Hamilton Palace in Lanarkshire in Scotland. Family His parents were James, 1st. Marquis of Hamilton and Lady Ann Cunningham. Lady Ann Cunningham was the daughter of James, Earl of Glencairn. In 1609 James' insane great uncle, also called James (What's in a name?!) Earl of Arran died, so the little James was styled Earl of Arran. Heir to the throne The Young James's close ancestor was Princess Mary, daughter of King James II of Scotland and Mary of Guelders. After the death, in 1612, of Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales, the young James became third in line to the Scottish throne, after Charles, Duke of Rothesay and his sister Elizabeth (who later became Queen of Bohemia). Later the Young James was sent to Exeter College in Oxford. Art From a very young age, James was interested in art. He collected Venetian painting through an agent: Viscount Basil Feilding. Nowadays this collection can be seen at the Ku...